


The shell, the bottle caps and the water balloons.

by thebutcherscrossing



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010), McDanno - Fandom
Genre: Falling In Love, First Kiss, First Time, Fluff, Getting Together, Idiots in Love, Inspired By Tumblr, M/M, OTP Feels, Prompt Fic, Tumblr Prompt, mcdanno
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-11
Updated: 2015-08-31
Packaged: 2018-04-14 06:07:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,788
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4553610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thebutcherscrossing/pseuds/thebutcherscrossing
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gracie's box was essentially a museum to Steve and Danny's relationship. Partners in crime (or rather fighting it), but not partners in life just yet, this is a fic to explore the tentative beginnings to what might become something great. </p><p>Steve is a total goof, and Danny needs to realise that he is in love with him.</p><p>This all started from the prompt: 'you weren’t the intended target for that water balloon, shit, sorry' which I just came across on Tumblr. It is my first fic ever so I apologise if it is grammatically/plot-ly/character-ly horrible. I just kept reading incredible Mcdanno fics and couldn't help myself.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Gracie's Box.

Asides from the obvious fact that Danny didn’t have to work on a Saturday, Saturday's were his favourite day because Gracie was here. Most weekends were spent at Steve’s house, on the golden Hawaii beach, Grace and Danny playing like seals in the surf and watching Steve expertly navigate the waves on his board. Yet this particular Saturday, Steve was with Catherine. Not something Danny really wanted to think about too comprehensively.

But they had just wrapped up on a particularly exhausting case, having spent almost 24 hours a day with each other for the past 6 days, it has been debilitatingly intense work both physically and emotionally. Danny deemed it only fair to give Steve some time away with this not-in-name-but-pretty-much-in-real-life-girlfriend, Catherine. Besides Danny couldn’t be upset when Gracie was around. There was something about her laugh and smile which was intoxicating for her father, something which made Danny feel a little high. She had a magical way of calming him, it was unlike any other love that he had managed to conjure. He certainly never felt this desperate love for his ex-wife. 

Gracie had turned up at Danny’s on Friday night with a box adorned with multicoloured tissue paper polka dots strewn across its surface. Small and colourful just like her. When Danny came down to make her breakfast on Saturday morning, he was surprised to find her already sat at the breakfast island, fully clothed in swimming gear, a pair of goggles around her neck and flip flops hanging from her tiny perfect toes. Having not allowed Danny to see inside the box the night before, she had now spread its contents across the marble surface. 

He wrapped his arms around his daughter and picked up one of the shells in front of him.  
“What are these Monkey?”  
“It’s a shell Danno, duh.” She replied incredulously. He squeezed her shoulders as she moved a few items on the table around, into a perfect straight line, a peculiar sort of line up.  
“Thanks for that Monkey, I think I got that..” he started but she jumped in pointing at various objects as she spoke.  
“This is the shell we picked up on Uncle Steve’s beach that first time he invited us over to his house. Remember Danno? When we played cards on the beach and you let me stay up late?” A slow smile crept onto Danny’s face, gentle and pensive. “And these are the bottle caps from last weekend when you and Uncle Steve had beers and you let me have that nice lemonade”. In her hand rested 3 metal caps, with crinkled edges and a fold in the metal where they had been removed from the bottle. Two were identical, brown with a miniature longboard in silver in the centre, and the third was pale yellow, with a gold curlicue calligraphy ‘L’ on it. She rolled them around in her palm, and they flipped over and over making a soft chinking sound as they toppled onto one another. 

“And this is the drawing of you and Uncle Steve when he told you he didn’t think you could surf and you proved him wrong and he was really shocked.” She sniggered softly, a warmth radiating from her, a mix of pride for her father and the drawing she had done. She unfolded it gently, revealing a swell of blues; azure, navy, lapis, cerulean darting across the thin paper. A burnt umber brandished the bottom of the drawing, sand adorned with tiny white shells, and in the centre were two figures. One lithe body sat atop a surf board in the water, legs beneath the waves, the other with distinctively yellow hair stood on a huge sculpted body of blue - arms outstretched - the definition of composed. It wasn’t quite as Danny remembered it, he remembered feeling distinctly less stable than Gracie’s picture portrayed. 

This entire box is just a record of us hanging out with Steve, thought Danny. 

“And these are for today.” She beamed, spinning round on her stool to face her father. She held out a large red plastic packet of water balloons. “Uncle Steve gave my these for my birthday but told me I shouldn’t tell you.” Thanks Steve. “But I want to have a water balloon fight today Danno.” She had that look written across her face. The one that slightly perturbed Danny, because it definitely spelled trouble. 

 

And so here they stood, like a scene from some 70s spaghetti Western shoot out. A balloon in each hand, standing directly opposite each other with about 15 metres between them, staring - no... squinting - at one another. Danny was going to let her win of course, but not before he had soaked her. Her smile was far too sly, far too much like she knew what she was doing for Danny’s liking. 

The sea lapped at the the sandy shore, and the branches of the Casuarina trees bristled as though preparing for the onslaught, and then she struck. Brightly coloured balloons flew through the air towards Danny at such a speed that he was stunned into inactivity. He watched, as though occupying another body, as his daughter charged towards him arms spinning like a Berserka, releasing balloon after balloon and hitting him more frequently than a 10 year old should be capable of. 

The cold water crashing down upon him rallied him into action and he began to retaliate, but she dodged expertly and ran behind one of the deck chairs that Steve always left out. 

On this rare occasion, my height might actually come in handy here. He thought, but as he did so while scrambling behind a mango tree, he was hit again by a flying green projectile which exploded on impact further dousing Danny in freezing water. 

I’m not even trying to lose here, what is going on?! His daughter of 10 was thrashing him in open combat. 

“Did Uncle Steve train you up Monkey?! Or are you actually this good? If so, I might be dangerously close to being usurped.” he shouted from behind the trunk, then sprinting across to the deckchairs and launching a pale pink balloon at Gracie, drenching her as she screamed with joy, water pouring down her face while launching off down the beach, sand flying in all directions. 

An assault of balloons were fired in the next 10 minutes, until Grace - in a last ditch attempt to soak her father - careered round the corner of the house to hide. 

Two can play at that game Gracie. 

Danny crept to the corner of the wood panelled house as stealthily as possible, prepared for full attack, two balloons in each hand. He burst round the corner at high speed releasing the balloons at the body moving towards him. But much to Danny’s shock, the face looking back at him now was not that of Grace’s. It was of a rather wet, surprised looking Steve.

“Oh shit! Steve, oh man, I’m so sorry! I meant to drench Gracie.” who by this point looked like all her christmases had come at once and immediately began to laugh hysterically. Which of course set Danny right off.

“You think this is funny Daniel? This is my best shirt…” Danny looked him up and down dismissively, an eyebrow raised high.  
“Steven, that is the same old shirt you wear to work, except you washed it this time…. and now (Danny threw his head back and began to laugh again) well now, it has been washed again. For a marine you are pretty slow Steven!”.

And at that moment, a glint appeared in Steve’s eyes. A slightly murderous and somewhat threatening look surfaced as he shook his hair and picked up some brightly coloured filled balloons from next to Gracie, not once taking his eyes away from Danny’s.

“You asked for this Danno.” He said in a worryingly blank tone. Danny knew not to question that and promptly turned on his heels and ran as fast as his (quite little - let’s be frank) legs could carry him. He was already soaked to the skin, literally could not get any more wet (thanks to Monkey) but with a SEAL bearing down on him at a speedy pace, he felt the urge to run in the opposite direction. Danny didn’t want to even contemplate the apt metaphor that was currently transpiring, Steve chasing him, because now was not the time to be thinking about that. Not in these soaked and now dangerously clingy board shorts Danny was wearing…

As he approached the sea, realising there was very little further he could go, he heard Gracie - in between fantastic bouts of laughter - scream; “Book him Uncle Steve!” just as (in typical McGarrett style) Steve leapt and while flying through the air, tackled Danny to the ground smashing a water balloon on Danny’s head as he fell.

They lay there laughing, the two of them, water lapping at their finger tips, Steve with an arm either side of Danny and a leg precariously placed between Danny’s own, as Gracie ran over to them and jumped on her dad.  
“We win! We win!” She exclaimed, chiming it over and over again melodically.  
“We? This was all you Gracie.” chuckled Steve, breathing heavily as he ruffled her hair lightly, grinning widely now.  
Steve readjusted himself as Danny moved a little as his chest rose and fell heavily, Danny was now lying on his back with his head resting on Steve’s elegantly sculpted and irritatingly large bicep, Steve leaning over him slightly to talk to Gracie.  
“I didn’t even know you two were coming over today.” he turned to look at Danny “I thought I mentioned I was out today, sorry Danno I must have forgotten.” He frowned, then lay back in the wet sand, looking up to the sky staring worriedly.  
“No, you told me yesterday, just Monkey here wanted a water balloon fight and we thought you wouldn’t mind us using the beach.” Danny’s head was titled up to look at Steve’s face. His cheek was flush up against Steve’s chest and he had to focus on the worry lines on Steve’s face to stop from dwelling on the realisation that he could feel the SEAL’s heart beating though his ribcage. 

“Where’s Catherine Uncle Steve?” Gracie questioned, prodding Steve in the leg as she did so. The afternoon sun was behind her and she looked like some Italian painting, golden lines emanating from her head as though the Madonna herself. Danny tried to sit up but Steve - barely noticeably - gripped Danny’s shoulder a little tighter as though to stop him. He rested his head back where it was and waited for Steve’s reply. He would be lying if he said he was interested as well. 

“Well miniature Danno, she is going back to the mainland - back to work - and she won’t be in Hawaii for much longer.” Gracie, not seeing Danny’s look of worry, started to protest greatly.  
“No Uncle Steve! Stop calling me that! I'm not mini Danno!” She had a look of unabashed childish irritation writ across her tanned skin, her little eyes shining like the vast ocean behind them. It set both men laughing again. 

They only stopped when Danny sat up and pulled Gracie off the sand and over his shoulder, spouting great overtones about his love for cold beer. He turned round to see Steve sat up now, elbows rested on his knees in the sand, head hung low. Danny slung Gracie down and told her to run to the kitchen and grab him two beers. She skipped into the house, completely unaware of Steve’s strange behaviour. Danny walked slowly over to his partner, rested his hand on his shoulder, felt the muscles relax as he leant into him, relief and comfort in a single touch. He looked up to Danny.

  “It has been a long day Danno.”  
“I know babe, I’m sorry. Let’s have a beer.” Cue Gracie with two deliciously cold longboards and a piece of bread in her mouth. Another piece in her hand. The men looked at each other, eyebrows raised knowingly. 

“Hungry Gracie?” asked Steve, standing now, his hand ruffling her damp hair again, something he couldn’t help but do as much as he tried, as patronising as he knew it probably was.  
“Yes!” She replied emphatically, jumping up and down. Steve smiled again.  
“I have pasta, some shrimp and chorizo in the fridge. I will put something together.”  
Danny put his hand to Steve’s lower back and guided him into the house. “Sounds good babe. But there is a distinct lack of cheese in that recipe, so we might have to improve it somehow".

Steve gave him the usual look of contempt masking the smile he so desperately wanted to give, but hated Danny having the satisfaction of.  
But he was glad they were here. Steve felt the fear of being alone this evening dissipate, the warmth of Danny’s hand on his back and Gracie skipping ahead of them chewing on bread. And for the first time that day, he felt a little better, a little less nervous, a little more at home.


	2. Under water out of mind.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grace and Steve cook Danny dinner. Steve and Danny share a moment or two, and Danny questions Steve about Catherine.

Grace was occupying herself with helping Steve, passing him various ingredients while Danny sat at the breakfast island, longboard in hand looking at the two people he treasured most in the world. Gracie’s hair was still damp at the end of her ponytail, leaving a patch of darker coloured blue between her shoulder blades where the water spread. Steve was looking slightly less damp and sandy now, in a t-shirt than he had found on the back of the sofa from the day before. The work surfaces around them were covered in bags of different types of pasta. Grace couldn’t decide which shapes she wanted more, the butterfly shaped ones or the long tubes, the tiny wheel shapes or the wholemeal spirals - as to why Steve had these Danny didn’t even know.

Looking back to when Rachel wanted to leave Stan and head back to Jersey to start their family again, Danny felt a bit sick. He has been so close to just upping and going. To deserting his new Ohana. It all seemed like a distant and slightly nauseating dream. He wasn’t sure that he could have left Steve, but at the time Steve was just synonymous with the job. Sure they were friends but for his family… he would have left anyone.  
Yet now something had changed, and it felt so much different. 

There was some ghastly boy band group playing in the background which Grace had conveniently put on the radio as her and Steve had been rummaging through the fridge. When Danny had pulled a face and questioned her ‘shocking music taste’ she had turned to him and given him a stare which even Super SEAL over there would have quivered at. Fair to say they were stuck with the dangerously catchy autotuned voices for the time being. 

“Uncle Steve are you ready for these yet?” Gracie was stood at Steve’s side now, hands clamped firmly around an open tin of chopped tomatoes for fear of dropping them. She was concentrating on the pool of red liquid in the can as it tilted towards her hands when she wobbled it. The smells were heavenly, in the pan was a mix of herbs, garlic and onions turning golden and soft. Steve threw in some chopped chorizo with a hiss as they hit the pan and turned towards Grace - who was still staring intently at the contents of the can. 

“I reckon it’s time Monkey.” and lifted her up beneath her arms to pour it in. Danny’s emotions were all over the place. A deep curdled worry for Steve - who was looking a little fried himself - but a whole hearted adoration for the tender interaction between his daughter and the man he held so dear. 

How dear, Danny didn’t like to think about for too long. Extended periods of thinking about Steve always ended up leaving Danny a little confused. There was risk in all of that. Desire and foolhardy longing and the realisation that Danny would risk everything and anything for Steve… which inevitably put Grace in danger. And he couldn’t do that again. Yet he knew as things stood, that if Danny needed to take a bullet for Steve then it wasn’t something he could stop himself doing anymore. Even knowing Grace would suffer, it had become a desperate possibility. He simply trusted Steve too much, he trusted him to look after Grace if anything happened to him. And that frightened the shit out of Danny.

“Fancy a game of COD after dinner Steve?” Danny offered, walking to the fridge to grab another couple of beers.  
“Me too danno?” inquired Grace, eyes all innocent and sugary. It was that look that made it very hard to say no. Coupled with the splash of sauce brandishing her cheek and the small Grace-sized apron she had around her neck - triple threat.  
“Gracie, sweet heart you know how I feel about you playing violent video games.”  
She looked incredulous - older than her years.  
“But it is fine for you two to play?” She asked, mouth down turned.  
Steve, still facing the oven top stirring the sauce, snorted loudly.  
“She’s got you there Danno.” laughed Steve. “Right you two, get the plates and cutlery, dinner is ready.”

—————

Dinner was a complete success, tasting even more delicious knowing that Steve and Grace had poured over it together. Danny was on washing up duty - you cook dinner you get away without having to wash up - soap suds up to his elbows and hair a little out of place thanks to his sand dive with Steve a few hours earlier. Steve and Grace were on the sofa now playing Call Of Duty, because Danny couldn’t say no to Grace on a good day, let alone with Steven involved. And he was quite happy in his own world, hands in warm water looking out to the slowly rolling sea through the window. The sun was setting now, and it cast it’s beautifully warm light across the bay, slipping behind the horizon as though the sea was some kind of stage set. 

“You day dreaming again Danno?” laughed Steve as he wandered up behind Danny to bring the rest of the bowls from the table. He lowered the bowls into the water brushing Danny’s hands with his as he did so. The action was so gentle, the slick touch of skin made his body quiver a little causing Steve to look at him quizzically. Danny softened, and reached over Steve’s hands which were still holding the bowls, and took the top one off the pile to wash it, making sure to brush across Steve’s skin as he did so, the touch was intimate, gentle and just a little bit dangerous. There was a subtle but palpable tension between them, a low buzz that hung in the air and make both men bristle a little. 

 “Danno, can I have ice-cream now?” Grace called from the sofa, shattering the moment. Steve pulled his arms from the soapy water, bubbles having formed on the hair on his arms.  
 “You will have to ask Steve if he has any… and what is the magic word Monkey?” Cooed Danny.  
“I think I might have some vanilla in here, but nothing more exciting Gracie, I’m sorry.” Steve looked a little flustered, the apples of his cheeks flushed pink. He slowly opened the freezer and pulled out the half eaten tub of vanilla ice-cream. “There is probably only enough for 2. You guys have it”.

Danny stood drying his hands protesting with mock disdain; “Oh no Super SEAL, you don't get to hand out your ice-cream now and then when Gracie goes to bed, use that as an excuse to make me get the beers and snacks for the rest of the evening”. He stood across from Steve, one hand on his hip and the other waving theatrically in the air in his usual manner, as Grace laughed on for the sofa. 

“Uncle Steve! Do you really do that?!” She was grinning now, clearly finding the whole exchange hugely funny.

Steve stood up straight and lifted his chin up defiantly and replied in his best outraged voice “I absolutely, categorically would never do that to your father Grace. He is a horrible liar. And frankly I only hang out with him so that you and me can be friends”. 

Grace cackled from the sofa, kneeling up and leaning over the back of the cushions facing them. “I always liked you better anyway Uncle Steve”. Which of course drew the intended reaction from her father, who swept across the room, leapt over the back of the sofa and lifted her up by her ankles so that she was dangling upside down laughing hysterically. 

“GRACE WILLIAMS! SAY THAT AGAIN. SAY THAT AGAIN I DARE YOU.” But Grace was laughing so hard she could barely breathe let alone speak. And Steve was stood, head cocked to the side, calmly scooping out ice-cream into two bowls chuckling to himself. 

Danny lowered Grace onto the sofa and then lifted her into his arms. “Monkey, you can’t like Steve more than me, that is not how this father daughter thing works.” He looked more serious now, not angry but a little apprehensive. But Grace, clearly sensing her father’s nerves put her forehead to her father’s, and whispered earnestly;

“Danno, I love you the most of course. But I love Steve too”. She turned to check that Steve wasn't looking, she didn't want it to spoil the moment between her and her father. She didn't really want him to be jealous. 

He smiled at that. She was diplomatic at the best of times, but right now in this moment, she wanted to be honest. And no father could challenge their child on that. He collapsed into the sofa and plopped her down next to him. 

“Here you go princess.” Steve said handing Grace a bowl. “And you and I can share this one Princess number 2”. He handed Danny an identical bowl with two spoons then sat down on the sofa next to him and Grace. The entire left side of Steve’s body was touching Danny which of course Danny was HYPER aware of. Steve reached into Danny’s lap and retrieved a spoon and started eating the vanilla ice-cream. They sat there for a few minutes eating ice-cream and Danny could practically feel the burn of restraint pulsing through his body as he desperately tried not to show how much he was enjoying being so close to his partner. 

“I’m pretty sure this isn’t part of your SEAL diet Steven.” He stated, distracting himself with an attempt at humour.

“I’m pretty sure this is part of your every day diet Daniel, and that I am merely trying to save you from yourself.” The corners of Steve’s lips began to curl up as his eyes met Danny’s. 

Grace in amongst this dangerous bout of flirting, hadn’t even managed a mouthful, instead she had fallen asleep against Danny’s shoulder, bowl in her lap and spoon in hand. Steve nodded towards her.

“I think we might have worn her out.” He whispered softly. 

Danny took a spoonful of the ice-cream from her bowl and ate it. “This was all part of my cunning plan Steven. Leave ice-cream until later so that she will fall asleep and I can eat it all. There are many perks to having a child you know”. 

Steve raised an eye brow at that. Not entirely sure that Danny was joking. He moved the bowls onto the floor so that Danny could pick Grace up, and then watched as Danny carried her up the stairs to the spare room.

—————

When Danny returned 20 minutes later, Steve had washed the bowls and was now sat on the floor in front of the tv, xbox controller in hand, shooting some unsuspecting graphic figure in camo. He joined Steve on the floor and picked up Grace’s controlled from before and waited for Steve to change to a multiplayer setting.

They didn’t speak, they just sat there in one another’s company, playing Call Of Duty for an hour or so. They barely moved, other than for the occasional nudge here and there, the light clash of elbows during vigorous fire fight or the dramatic lying on the floor when one of them lost a key strategic position. They took it all oddly seriously. Mainly because Steve was definitely not as good as Danny. And that severely irked him.  
It was dark outside now, black velvet had rested upon the sky and tiny pin pricks of pure white light were shot though it, stars dancing above the house casting a hazy radiance onto the sand outside. The sound of the waves could be heard over the muted game play, hushed so not to wake Grace - although given how sound a sleeper she was that shouldn’t really have been an issue. 

“Steven…” Danny started, his fingers rapidly pressing buttons, his wrists twisting an turning as though doing so would help improve his game play. “Steven… I think that all your Super SEAL training might not have stood you in such great stead for the virtual world of combat.” He didn’t draw his eyes from the screen but could see and feel the outline of Steve’s figure shift slightly from the corner of his eye. 

“Daniel. You and I both know that I am going easy on you, for the sake of your precious ego.” he hummed dangerously. Although for the first time in a while, Steve wasn’t so sure what he was saying was true. 

“Whatever you want to believe Steven…” he took a shot and incapacitated his intended target, “but we both know that you are deluding yourself”. He took another shot and took out another target. He really was good at this. And they both knew it. 

“I don’t know if I like this side of you Daniel.” Steve took a shot and took out another enemy. “But I am getting tired now, so lets call it time” and with that he paused play and put down his controller much to the surprise of Danny who looked down at his hands, then over to Steve.

“Don’t worry buddy, when we see real action, know that I have your back when you can’t quite make the shot.” The look of fake compassion was enough to send Steve mad. Let alone the patronising tone dripping from Danny’s mouth. 

Danny’s mouth… his mouth…

Steve dropped his eyes to his crossed legs and exhaled. All was silent in the house apart from the almost imperceptible sound of Gracie snoring from the floor above. Danny knocked his knee with Steve’s. 

“You wanna talk about what happened with Catherine today?” He inquired.

Steve looked up then, with a look that suggested he had almost forgotten the day, a slight haze came over his face then and he suddenly looked very tired.  
“She is going back to the mainland.” he said in a matter of fact manner.  
“I got that from our previous foray into the topic, but what you didn’t elaborate upon is why.” Danny countered.  
Steve sighed again. “We aren’t going anywhere Danny. We don’t want the same things, she wants… she wants me to settle down and start thinking about our future.”  
“And you don’t want that. To settle down.”  
There was another silence, Danny was staring at Steve intently and Steve could feel his eyes on him as the silence grew.  
“Not with her, no.”

The statement was laced with meaning. Subtext quite literally oozed from it, pooling on the floor around them. Steve didn’t dare look at Danny, for fear he had been too obvious. He closed his eyes and hung his head. But then he felt a warm hand upon his shoulder blade. It was intentionally weighted, a thumb softly rubbing the fabric of his t-shirt. Over the sound of the muffled waves was the slow dragging of thumb across cotton. A sound which felt overwhelmingly loud to Steve. Mingling with the internal pounding of the blood roaring in his ears.

“I’m sorry Buddy.” Came the sound to shatter Steve’s transient state. It was almost too quiet to hear. “You’ll find your girl”. At which Steve inhaled loudly and pulled himself together, triggering the removal of Danny’s hand for his back, and he moved to stand up. Danny matched him and palmed his eyes with the padded heel of his hand.  
“I am ready for bed I think.”  
“Yeah. Yeah, me too.” replied Steve. “You ok on the sofa again?” he asked turning off the tv and xbox, purposefully not looking at Danny now.  
“Yeah, absolutely. Gracie needs the bed more than me.”  
“Ok then.” Steve walked over to the stairs and threw Danny the blanket that had hung over the stair rail. 

“Night Danno.” 

Danny nodded at Steve and mussed his fingers through his hair like he did every time he settled down to relax, sitting down on the sofa and collecting the pillows in a neat pile.

“Night Steve.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for your generous feedback! As always you can find me at thebutcherscrossing.tumblr.com 
> 
> xoxox


	3. Innuendo and Ingredients

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Steve is fretting about what to buy Danny for his birthday, finds himself doing more than just thinking about Danny in the shower, and trying something he has never done before.

It has been about 2 weeks since Danny and Steve had properly hung out. For some reason time had eluded them. At first Steve had worried about those few moments back at the house, the washing up and their somewhat charged chat about Catherine. But nothing had changed between him and Danny, it was merely that the Chane case they had been working on had left them little to no time for any socialising. 

But now came the issue of Danny’s birthday. It was undeniable, the dynamic between the two men had changed and that in turn had led to Steve freaking out about what to buy him. He just wasn’t sure where to tow the line between ‘I love you Brah’ and ‘Make love to me on my private beach’. And in fairness, it wasn’t an easy line to draw. He wasn’t ready to fuck everything up with Danny and reveal just how he felt about him because he had fairly aggressively convinced himself that Danny could never feel that way in return. In all his wildest and most liberal dreams, Steve just didn’t see Danny as being gay. 

(Sidenote: Many, MANY times had Steve imagined Danny being gay. Gay with him. Gay in a very very explicit way. But when it came to reality, Steve struggled to find the evidence for it.)

Steve always thought he did an excellent job of hiding those slightly overwhelming emotions behind a steely SEAL look of disregard, especially while Catherine was around. He had always been able to fall back on her in times when he thought he had pushed the relationship a bit far. Like the time Steve likes to pretend didn’t happen a few months ago, when he wandered down stairs completely naked to find Danny not all that asleep on his couch after a long weekend with Gracie. They had sort of stared at one another, laughed and awkwardly gone about their business, Danny - pretending to sleep and Steve - pretending all he wanted from that interaction was a glass of water. He had made sure he had Catherine glued to his side the next night at the bar over drinks with the team. But Catherine was back on the mainland now, and he didn’t have someone to so easily hide behind. 

So now, Steve had the all important - and therefore all kinds of tricky - decision of what to buy Danny for his birthday. Which thanks to his worry/procrastination on the subject, lay at T-minus 24 hours. This called for drastic action. It was time to pull in the big guns and talk to Kono. 

“I’m heading out. We still on for dinner at my place with Gracie tomorrow guys?” Danny looked relaxed for once, his shirt was a little rumpled and Steve was biting down on the urge to a) panic at the lack of birthday present and b) walk up to Danny and kiss him in front of the team. That was becoming an increasingly tricky issue. Especially when they hadn’t spent very much time together recently… it only made Steve long of more moments together alone.

“We’ll be there Danny, don’t worry. 6.30pm sharp.” Kono reassured. Chin nodded in agreement and Danny looked to Steve for final confirmation.  
 “Sure Danno. We got it.” He threw him a soft smile, one that masked his internal thundering. And with that Danny turned, and walked out through the glass double doors, back to his house, and to a weekend of Gracie. 

Kono and Chin returned to their respective workspaces, and Steve followed, followed Kono to be exact. She stopped half way to her office seeing Steve’s reflection in the glass, and turned to him. 

“Everything alright Boss?” she had a smile on her face that Steve had seen regularly but still couldn’t decipher. 

“Ok. Look, I need your help. I haven’t got Danny a present yet and I don’t know what to get him.” He looked straight at Kono, hoping that the real reason he hadn’t settled on a gift wasn’t glaringly apparent. 

Kono smirked, it was a barely noticeable smirk, but it was a smirk none-the-less. She hadn’t missed the slightly desperate way he has said ‘I need your help’, nor had she missed the years of growing friendship and then the subtle shift of dynamic between her boys. She was a cop after all. 

“Well, Chin and I bought him a family pass to the Wakiki zoo for him and Grace, Max bought him a collection of old movies that Danny has at various points professed to be ‘Classics’, and I’m pretty sure Grace has made him a tie with pictures of Jersey and Hawaii on it”. Kono watched as Steve’s eyes began to grow to the size of small saucers. She sensed his anxiety prickling. 

“So, something personal I would say. Something he has mentioned to you but probably thinks you would have forgotten. Like I do with Adam. The surprise of someone remembering something that you said ages ago is often gift enough. Especially for you, who lives his life at warp speed.” She chuckled, dropping the bit about Adam in in hopes that Steve would catch her drift. From the look on his face, he hadn’t.

“Right. Sure. Something he thinks I will have forgotten.” The hands which were always pinned to his waist in an authoritarian fashion had dropped, one coming up to rub his forehead in what Kono could only describe as mild exasperation. “Thanks Kono. I’ll get right on it. See you tomorrow.” He smiled then, SEAL face back on, and walked back to his office.

“No problem Boss.” She called after him, the corners of her mouth twitching as she smothered another laugh. 

—————

Come 10pm and Steve was still placed firmly in his chair in his glass box office. The sturdy back of his chair was doing nothing to support his emotional anxiety however. Everyone had left hours ago. The lights had flicked off because he hadn’t moved for at least half an hour, head in hands deep in thought. The silence wasn’t helping at all, it only seemed to be getting louder.

After a sigh of complete exasperation he internally concluded that he would think of something in the morning. ’Time to head home’. And so he did, oddly reluctantly, peering in at Danny’s office as he walked past, catching a glimpse of the Jersey postcard tacked to his wall behind the desk. ‘Flying him home might be a bit extravagant Steve. Not to mention expensive’. 

This was a hell of a lot harder than he had thought.

—————

Morning seeped into Steve’s room at an even pace. He had laid awake watching the warmth spread across his bedroom. It had been soothing at first, but as the line of luminescence crept closer it became a rather ominous reminder that he still needed to craft something for Danny.

‘Something he thinks I will have forgotten.’ 

He bolted out of bed, escaping the sheets before the impending line of light caught his arm, and went for his usual 3 minute shower. As the water cascaded around his body, pouring down his tanned slick skin, he mentally ran through all the conversations he has had with Danny over his washing habits. Far too many times has Danny questioned his ability to have a ‘decent and thorough shower’ in 3 minutes. No matter how many times Steve has tried to explain Navy protocol, it never seems to sit right with Danny.

On one particular occasion Danny was picking Steve up before work just as Steve was coming in from a morning swim, the former throwing clothes at the latter and ordering him to take a high speed shower before heading out. 

“We have a case. Shower. Clothes. Go.” 

On Steve’s incredibly pacey return Danny had thrown up his arms and begun to protest. 

“That was too quick Steve. It just isn’t right. You aren’t enjoying the small things in life. Appreciating the calmness of the morning before the day begins. It is typical you to treat your morning ritual as a stepping stone to the hectic chaos of the day ahead.” Danny had looked genuinely outraged, hands flying in his usual theatrical manner, almost sad that his partner had never enjoyed the shower for what it was. 

“You literally just told me to take a ‘high speed shower’ Danno. We don’t need to have this conversation again.” Replied Steve, cocked eyebrow as he pulled his socks onto freshly dry feet.

“I just think it is sad, that’s all. You simply don’t take the time to appreciate how relaxing a warm shower is in the morning. It is the calm before the storm… I just think you are missing out.” Danny frowned, leaning against the door frame to the kitchen. 

“You know the amount you go on about the ‘shower experience’ Danno, the more I think there might be something you are not telling me about your own personal morning ritual…” Steve had a shameless smile writ across his face, letting his comment hang in the air as he pulled up from putting his socks on and stared Danny in the face. 

The very top of Danny’s forehead began to turn a crimson as he crumpled his face in disgust. “You, McGarrett, have a mind literally soaked in filth”. 

Steve had laughed loudly then, throwing his head back to emphasise how funny he thought his comment has been. “Probably all those three minute showers” he said as he had thrown on a fresh shirt, “maybe it just isn’t enough time after all”.

Steve reflected on that moment now, realising he was stock still and staring at a tile on the shower wall while the water ran over him. He felt flushed remembering the moment, suddenly unable to get the image of Danny touching himself in the shower out of his mind. The warm water felt almost like a caress as it followed the line of his spine all the way down his back. He sighed and rested his head against the tile in front of him, his now very erect penis wasn’t going to let him get away that easily, throbbing in spite of Steve’s best efforts. So in the midst of the steam and the warm water pooling at his feet, Steve did exactly what Danny would have wanted, and allowed himself an extended shower. An extended shower that literally climaxed with a panting, straining Steve, stood slumped against the tiled wall, mouthing Danny’s name silently. 

As usual, Danny had been right. Steve had been missing out on the blissful morning routine.

—————

By the time Steve made it downstairs, the pads of his fingers all prune like from spending more time than usual in the shower, he was in desperate need of a coffee. He pulled the worn mug out from the drying rack, the mug Grace had bought him for christmas and the only one he ever used anymore. It had a child’s drawing of a seal on it, smiling as it sat on a surfboard. On the other side of the cup read the words; ‘This kind of seal :)’. 

As Steve poured coffee and creamer into the mug, he smiled, remembering the confused look on Grace’s face when Danno had first called him ‘Super SEAL’. She had taken then to drawing Steve as a seal in all her pictures of them surfing, much to Danny’s amusement.

As he took a sip of hot coffee he suddenly felt a pool of anxiety settle in his stomach. This mug was just another example of thoughtful gift giving on the Williams’ part. The guitar, the mug, the new barbecue tongs. Way to amp up the pressure partner. 

And then something edged it’s way into the periphery of his mind. Just a little something from the night before, and then it slowly began to flood in, picking up pace as it went.   
‘Jersey. It has to be Jersey’ he thought.

Taking his coffee with him, he perched on a stool by the breakfast island and opened his laptop and began searching. After about and hour of in-depth internet investigation around the topic of Italian heritage in New Jersey, Steve was grinning and no longer feeling quite so anxious. Putting his mug on the side of the counter, he swept his wallet off the marble top and checked his watch.

‘8.30am. Shop’s will be open, and that gives me enough time to make a mistake and cook them again.’ he mentally timetabled. Steve didn’t want to make a mistake, but of course when it came to baking, his SEAL skills weren’t all that applicable. No. This was all riding on Steve’s normal human skill set, which to be frank, was distinctly lacking in certain areas.

—————

When the clock struck 9.30am, Steve was stood back in the kitchen, staring at the counter in front of him. The table top was covered completely in bags of various ingredients, too many ingredients one might argue. He had of course written down said ingredients directly from the various recipes so that he could buy them (well done Steve, mental pat on the back for that one), but he had assumed ‘flour’ and ‘sugar’ were just universal items. 

How wrong he had been.

So now, he had 12 bags of flour - all 1.5 kilos - stood upright on the counter to his left. Self raising, plain white bread flour, spelt flour, wholemeal flour, white flour, cake flour etc (the list goes on). Then there were the 8 bags of sugar, golden granulated, caster sugar, light brown muscovado, dark brown muskovado, demerara… because WHO KNEW THERE WERE SO MANY TYPES OF SUGAR. 

Then there were the eggs. The eggs he could do. Eggs he had bought before and totally understood. He was proud of his eggs. All 18 of them. Because if SEAL training has taught him anything it was to be prepared. And he felt prepared with all this eggs.

Amongst the flour, sugar and eggs lay various chopped nuts, all kinds of chocolate (70% dark, milk, 85% cocoa etc), then of course the coconut shavings, the cream (double, single, whipping) and anything else he had grabbed from the shelves of the supermarket in a desperate attempt at taking the necessary steps in creating Danny’s birthday present.  
He opened his laptop again, went methodically through the recipes a few times, and began selecting certain ingredients and placing them in little clusters on various worktops. Order. Order was what he needed here. 

He selected 1 egg, the chopped chocolate (75% cocoa), largely chopped hazelnuts, plain flour, vanilla essence, milk and some golden caster sugar from the larger mishmash of items and began measuring them out. Then meticulously followed the recipe to create the first batch of what Steve had to admit, were pretty impressive chocolate and hazelnut biscotti. 

He had struggled at the ‘second bake’ part of the recipe (not even aware that you could bake something twice, let alone why it was so crucial to biscotti), and he wasn’t sure when to slice into them after they came out of the oven the first time so that they wouldn’t fall apart when he cut them into perfect 1cm thick slices. He wasn’t sure how long to put them back into the oven so that they would dry out but not go so hard that he broke Danny’s teeth. In truth, he had seldom felt more nervous doing anything than cooking baked goods for Danny. It was satisfying but incredibly stressful.

But alas, 18 eggs and 8 hours later; Steve stood in the centre of the kitchen again, floor at his hair line where he had tried to rub the sweat from his forehead too many times to recount, cream on his cheek and cocoa powder on his collarbone, watching proudly over the cooling racks in front of him, stacked with cake and biscuits and pastry goods. He carefully removed all the paraphernalia from the worktops, having used every single pan and bowl in his house (and several of his next door neighbours too) and began to wipe down the surfaces of all the mess. 

At 6pm he nervously left his creations - shutting all windows and doors to the outside world so that no creatures could steal them (he was strangely paranoid about that) - and went upstairs to have his second shower of the day and get changed out of his spectacularly covered clothes. Seriously though, it would take some serious effort for someone to get that messy when baking, but apparently Steve had achieved it. He would definitely score top of the class in mess making. 

By 7pm, he was pacing the kitchen trying to decide the best way to wrap up his baked gifts. And how to give them to Danny in the least conspicuous way possible, as though he hadn’t spent the whole day dedicated to learning what it meant to blanch something, or how to flute pastry, or just exactly how ‘stiff’ stiff peaks are. He didn’t think throwing the wrapped up cake boxes at him in a fit of panic would be a great idea, so he piled up the neatly tied up boxes filled with edible delicacies and placed them in the bags from the supermarket earlier. There was something nice about the bags having entered the house carrying ingredients, and leaving full with actual edible food. Steve smiled at the thought. Checking his watch, taking a deep breathe and carrying the boxes to his truck and stacking them carefully into the front seat and in the footwell.

—————

When Steve arrived, it was clear that Kono had been too excited to bother with the whole fashionably late concept, as her, Chin and Max were already sat around the breakfast island in Danny’s apartment with beers in hand, deep in conversation. 

“Uncle Steve!” Cried Grace as she saw him enter. “You’re here!” barrelling into him, wrapping her arms around his waist tightly. A lesser man would have collapsed under the force of her, but Steve had seen her coming a mile off, and had steadied himself in preparation.  
 “Hey you. Fancy seeing you again so soon.” He laughed as he felt her squeeze him tight. The others were watching from the kitchen now chuckling along as they offered Aloha’s. “Gracie, sweet heart, you are going to have to let go, I am going to drop Danno’s present”. 

She pulled away from Steve smiling, just as Steve felt a familiar hand come to rest on his shoulder from behind.   ‘A present? For me Steve? It’s almost like it’s my birthday.” Danny deadpanned as Steve turned around to meet the crystal blue eyes of his best friend and partner. Steve loved those eyes.

He wasn’t sure what to do next, how to hand the gifts over. So he just sort of raised his hands (and the bags with them) in an odd shrug motion.   
“There you go buddy. Enjoy” and then thrust them upon Danny before walking over to the kitchen.

Danny looked amused and a little baffled as he took the supermarket plastic bags from Steve’s hands.

“Wow Steven, did you actually just buy me snacks for my birthday?” his eyes were twinkling now.  
 “No way Danny. From the look on his face yesterday, it is something way better than that.” called Kono, winking at Steve and then surreptitiously taking a well timed sip from her beer as he walked over to her and gave her a look. Steve deliberately had his back turned to Danny and the bags now. He sort of didn’t want to see his reaction. So he occupied himself with Grace, picking her up for a hug and fussing her as though the presents were the last thing in the world he cared about.

After about a minute, in which there was no way Steve had listened and documented every rustle and scrape of cardboard against cardboard, or swish of ribbon and crinkle of plastic, Steve’s heart began to race.

“Erm. Steve.” said Danny from somewhere behind him. Steve turned around, Grace still in his arms.

“Yeah buddy?” as nonchalantly as he could manage, shifting Grace from his left side to his right so that she couldn’t feel how fast his heart was beating. 

“Steve, did you make me traditional Italian baked goods?” Danny had a look on his face that Steve couldn’t quite decipher, but shock was definitely mixed in there somewhere. All eyes were on Steve now, beer sipping had stopped, and silence rang out in waiting for his reply.

“Well. Sort of, yeah. Biscotti and cannellini and stuff. It’s no big deal.” his face read differently though, while he had tried to desperately mask his nerves under the charade of non-chalance, the beads of sweat forming on the SEAL’s forehead weren’t fooling anyone. 

“Well for a start, its ‘Cannoli’ Steven. Cannellini are a type of white bean, but we will let that slide because you actually remembered all those times I have complained about the weird desserts you guys have here, always filled with pineapple and never filled with enough cream…” He paused, disbelief radiating from him, “And you actually made these yourself? Like, you didn’t just buy them?”. 

He was staring at Steve again. Everyone was. 

“Yeah. They weren’t that hard to make. Let’s not make mountains out of molehills Danno”. He untangled Grace from his neck and placed her on a stool, then grabbed a beer from the fridge relishing the cold blast hitting his face. Hoping that it would cool his definitely reddening face a little. 

“That is really sweet Boss. Wow.” Steve was going to kill Kono and that big stupid grin she was sporting. Chin was next judging by the more subtle (but definitely recognisable) smirk forming on his face too.

“Cheers, buddy. This is awesome. I can’t believe you did this.” Danny was close to Steve now placing the contents of the boxes onto plates and inspecting them closely. He was focusing hard on the pastries, his voice a little quieter, softer almost. 

“You’re welcome Danno.” He offered, handing Danny a beer, “Happy birthday”. 

“Yeah happy birthday Brah!” Cried a voice from the door way as Kamekona swaggered into the room holding two crates of beer, “Let’s get this party started brotha!”.

Everyone was laughing heartily now, grins etched onto all their faces, Gracie swinging side to side on her stool. 

As conversation got under way, Danny turned to Steve and mouthed a simple ‘thank you’ accompanied with a smile that Steve swore could melt anyone’s heart. He walked over to Danny and put his arm around his shoulder, pulling him into the side of his body. Danny sunk into it, resting his head against Steve in a moment of genuine affection. It was a fond moment, brief, but fond. A moment that Kono couldn't help but make a mental note of. 

And then within seconds Danny was reaching for the Canolli and distributing them around his Ohana, joining in the conversation - something about shrimp again - and marvelling over how amazing the flake of Steve’s pastry was, how hard it was to achieve and how it basically made Steve Italian now. 

But amongst it all, Steve could still feel Danny’s warm imprint down the left side of his body.   
That, and the fond glow of family surrounding him.   
He could drink to that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, thank you for such positive feedback. This whole process is genuinely so scary - letting your brain child crawl off into the world of online fan fiction.
> 
> As usual, you can find me (or quiz me, whatever) at thebutcherscrossing.tumblr.com   
> xoxox


	4. A walking dichotomy.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Steve is invited to the zoo, it is revealed that Danny has a hidden knowledge, and that Steve does not.

Later that night, with Grace in bed and the rest of the party lounging on various chairs and the sofa of Danny’s apartment, Steve found himself sat in the sand next to Danny, beers in hand and toes beneath the cool fine grain of the beach. A light silence had fallen around them, in fact they hadn’t spoken since Danny had joined Steve out here, they were listening to the waves as they slowly lapped on the shore, and the voices of their friends occasionally swelling to raucous laughter then quietening down again. 

“You know, I really didn’t ever expect to be complimenting you on your pastry skills Steven. But I have to say that I am impressed.” Danny let his comment hang in the nighttime air. It was somehow still a little warm - darned Hawaii. It was none-the-less something Danny was slowly getting more and more used to. His voice rang out clearly like a bell and circled around Steve. 

“Don’t sound so surprised Danno. I am a man of many talents.” Steve’s smile slowly crept across his face and he took a sip of beer. “It just happens that I discovered my pastry skills later in life”. He breathed out sharply in a quiet laugh. He could hear how ridiculous he sounded but he rather enjoyed the soft banter that was rousing between them. He always felt settled whenever it sprouted from them. 

“A man of many talents. Wow. Modest as ever Steve.” Danny tilted his head to the right, his ear tilting towards the sand as he looked at Steve lopsidedly. “So. I was just wondering, erm, whether you might possibly…” he began to stutter a little. Unusual for Danny in the middle of ribbing Steve for his huge ego.

“Spit it out Danno.” Steve huffed.  
 Danny took another sip of beer and stared out to sea, making sure not to focus on the face that he knew was looking at him intently now.  
“Grace was wondering if you were free next Saturday.” He stated it, as though it was nothing to him. Except, that when Grace was involved, it always meant something to him, and Steve could see that writ across his partners distracted face.

“I’m always free for Grace”. By which he meant of course, Grace and Danny. “She knows that”.

Danny nodded swiftly, then began to peel away at the label of his beer. Rolling the corner of the sticker with the pad of his index finger. 

“Ok. You fancy coming to the zoo with us then? It’s just that Chin and Kono bought us a family pass and we can take another adult and I don’t much fancy taking Rachel given our history, I don’t want it to be weird and confusing for Monkey. I was hoping that we could go in the morning and make a full day of it you know? But if you change your mind or just don’t fancy the zoo, because I know that caged animals aren’t everyone’s thing, then that is fine too. Just let me know so that I can tell Grace… like it isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, I get it. And we do spend a lot of Saturdays with you, and I don’t want us to become a burden, so you know, what I am saying is that if you just fancy a bit of free time that is fine. You don’t have to come… Yeah.” Danny was quietly but speedily babbling now, eyes looking at his bent legs and fingers frantically prying at the label, fingernails scratching at the remaining glue underneath. 

Steve found himself breathing harder than usual, his breath having hitched in time with Danny’s strangely strangled words. He was zeroing in on Danny’s finger nails, erratically but purposefully scratching at the glass bottle. The word rolled around in Steve’s head. 

Family.

The night stretched out in front of them both. Steve couldn’t even allow himself to further explore what exactly that word would mean for him. What it meant for Danny to use it. Not right now anyway. 

He cleared his throat, closing his eyes and slowly inhaled and exhaled to slow his racing pulse. 

“Sure Danno. I would be honoured”. He wasn’t smiling. But he wasn’t frowning. A thin line sat on his face where his lips normally formed a grin. It was a thin line of concentration. Steve concentrated on simply regulating his heart rate as he brushed his fingertips across the back of his knuckles. 

“Cool.” Replied Danny, equally tense. A matching line formed by his lips. 

They fell into quiet again, until Kono called to them from the sofa and they had to go back inside to appease her, so that she wouldn’t shout so loud that Grace would wake up again.

—————

The week passed with it’s usual speed, the regular pace of investigation keeping the whole team on their feet, working late into the night and early into the mornings. The current case involved a impeccable replica of a renowned latin american painting, a Romanian drugs baron and plaster cast meringues containing carefully smuggled anglo saxon jewellery. But as peculiar as the sum of it’s parts seemed, and as intriguing as it all was when pieced together, Steve couldn’t shake the mild low level buzzing which seemed to follow him around. It was a sort of anxious fizz which only grew as the week speedily chased him to Saturday. 

Steve hadn’t been able to shake the pride he had felt that evening on the beach when Danny had asked him to be a part of his Zoo date with his daughter. It showed on his very body, he stood taller than usual, strode more confidently (if that is even possible) and bickered with Danny more playfully than he had in a while. And that fizz, it was a constant, effervescent reminder of what he had to look forward to at the weekend and the mild sense of panic he felt as to what it all meant.

All the arrangements had been set. Steve was to pick Danny and Grace up at 10am sharp and they were all to drive over to the zoo together. And Steve was only marginally freaking out.

It was a peculiar type of fear, one that he couldn’t quite put his finger on. He had been racking his brain trying to remember the point at which that fizzing had happened before. Because it wasn’t fear like when he went into combat, or was falling through the air at impossible speeds about to land in unmarked territory to complete a mission. It wasn’t the sort of fear that he felt when he was convinced he was going to slip up and accidentally tell Danny how he felt, that he had wanted to kiss him almost all the time and constantly found ways to accidentally touch him. It wasn’t the sort of fear that he felt when he was informed YET AGAIN that Wo Fat had escaped and his mother was off the grid. No. This was different.

And the it hit him. He had felt that fizzing before… with Mary. 

The night of his 16th birthday, when Steve’s Dad had informed him that he was leaving for the academy, Mary had slept on Steve’s floor. She hadn’t made a bed, she had simply crept into his room when it had started to get dark, threw some pillows and a few blankets in the corner and crawled underneath them like a cat. Steve had lay awake listening to her slightly irregular and almost completely muffled breathing. He knew that she was crying but he couldn’t bring himself to disturb her. He had simply lay there fizzing, feeling that he had let her down. That he was out of control of his life and couldn’t do what he needed to do to be there for his sister.

He had felt it again on the day of their father’s funeral. Hawaii had smelt familiar, it’s touch had been warm and soft and like falling back into a comfortable day dream. But what lay over all that was the oppressive nature of their father’s death. And Steve had sat on the bench over looking the sea, in his Navy Blues, hand wrapped around Mary’s, and he had felt it again. That fizzing. Like his body knew instinctively that he hadn’t done what he had set out to achieve, that he had let her fall without giving her a safe spot to land. He had disappointed her.

The fizzing was his deep seated fear of disappointing those he loved most dearly. And with the close proximity of Grace and this new fangled Ohana, Steve felt the opportunities to fail Danny’s little girl were suddenly much more available and undeniably close to the surface. 

So Friday night, Steve experienced another sleepless night at the hands of his over heating brain. Another night thinking about the effect of Danny on his life. Good or bad, he knew he would take whatever he could get from his partner, but the fizzing wouldn’t stop, and he felt somehow ashamed that he wasn’t everything that his friends and family wanted him to be. 

—————

“UNCLE STEVE!” shrieked Grace as she threw open the front door and launched herself at the lithe figure clambering out of the car, eyes peppered red from lack of sleep.

He wrapped his arms around Gracie and lifted her into the air, spinning around in circles so that her legs flailed out in a spinning top fashion. “Gracie! I missed you this week.” He said soberly, frowning at her when he put her down. But she looked at him dead set in the eyes and smiled in that typical Williams way - the smile that melts a thousand hearts - and simply replied, “Trust me, I missed you more Uncle Steve.”

His heart was fit for nothing when Grace said things like that. Nor was it fit for the tie Danny was wearing as he came towards them. It was his birthday tie, the one Kono had mentioned Grace had made for him. And it didn’t just include pictures of Jersey and Hawaii but various small cut out pictures of family. Steve could not stop staring at the miniature version of himself looking back at him from Danny’s chest. It was a selfie of Grace, Danny and Steve on the beach from a few months ago. It was sandwiched between a picture of some pizza and a blue ‘Welcome to New Jersey’ sign. 

“I know, I like your ugly mug on my tie about as much as I like pineapple on my pizza but this unscrupulous rascal thought it was a good photo, so here it is and we all have to move on.” Danny said smiling, handing Steve a back pack and the car keys with his left hand and pulling Grace into a side hug with his right.

Steve stuttered a little and then offered them both an open smile. “To the zoo then” he ordered turning to the car and throwing the back pack in the back not even asking Danny what it was. “I get it Danny, I really do… but you are going to get such weird looks for wearing a tie. Wearing a tie to a zoo. I mean, work I can get on board with, but the zoo Danno. I mean. It’s a place of relaxation. Of fun.” All three of them were belted up as Steve started the engine of the Camero, leaving his truck parked up on the side of the street.

“Don’t listen to Uncle Steve, Danno. He doesn’t understand fashion. I think you look handsome.” Grace protested from the back seat, eyes needling the back of Steve’s head as a 10 year old knee thudded against the back of the drivers seat and into Steve’s back.

Danny looked over at his partner who was pulling out onto the road. Steve saw the look on his face, it was so smug and made Steve remember that Grace was far too in love with Danno to ever say a bad thing about him. 

Steve looked at Grace in the mirror, “I never said Danno didn’t look handsome, Monkey. But he is rather over dressed”. He couldn’t look at Danny now, so just focused intently on driving with a disreputable smirk etched onto his face.

Grace began to giggle in the back, while Danny huffed in the passenger seat, eyes hooded and shoulders relaxing in a way that suggested that he had been through this rigmarole plenty of times before. 

“Just drive Super SEAL. We have a full day ahead, so save the hilarious comments for later.” Danny said, as he turned on the radio to Gracie’s favourite pop music station.  
—————

The Zoo was pretty busy, but then it was a perfect Saturday, not too humid but just the right amount of heat so that Danny was forced to take off his tie and open up the first few buttons of his shirt. Grace didn’t mind all that much, she was far too distracted by the white handed gibbons loping around in the trees ahead. Her eyes didn’t leave their clover shaped faces, or their pale golden coloured gangly arms.

Danny walked up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. She was stood, arms hanging by her sides, head tilted up with her plaits falling in perfect lines down her back, mouth slightly agape. 

“Did you know that they can swing distances of 10 metres between trees, Gracie?” Danny asked. Steve who was now stood next to them, stared at his friend, a slightly perplexed look came over his face. 

“They are the sort of gymnastic cheerleaders of the Sumatran jungle you see.” Danny continued, beginning to enunciate with the use of his hands. One hand sliding into his pocket and the other arm, elbow bent and hand turning over and around. 

“That’s so cool!” gaped Grace. She didn’t seem even the smallest bit phased by her father’s impressive knowledge of Gibbon activity, unlike Steve who was slightly perturbed by the nonchalance with which Danny was offering said information. But with little time to ponder on that thought, Danny was torn away by Grace who was forcibly dragging him by one hand over to the Francois langur enclosure. Steve followed, the bemused look still ghosting over his features.

“Look at his little pointed tuft Danno! He is so cute. I think Francois langurs are Old World monkeys Danno, right?” Grace was all wide eyes and admiration for both the monkeys and for her father.

“Yeah monkey.” He replied pointing at the tiny black and white figure perched in the tree in front of them, “And they also have two stomach compartments. One is full of a special bacteria which helps to digest all that foliage, cause they eat so many leaves. Leaves make up 50% of their diet I think.” Danny offers, stroking Gracie’s hair affectionately. Steve is definitely open mouthed now. He was stood slightly behind the two monkey admirers, as in awe of his partner as Grace was of the swinging langurs. But this time before Steve could even utter a word, Grace slotted her hand into his and pulled him away making excited noises. 

As they picked up a running pace, Grace began to squeal with excitement. “Uncle Steve! IT’S TIME!” she squeaked stabbing at the air with her index finger. Danny slotted in beside them laughing, breath hitched a bit from the running. Then he began to laugh hard as he and Steve both clocked what Grace was so excited about. 

In front of them, was the seal enclosure. A pale blue amphitheatre with a natural looking habitat right in the centre, and glass sides so the audience can see the silky underwater creatures as they glide past the visitors. Steve cracked a ginormous grin as he was pulled into the arena by Grace in his left hand, and snatching Danny’s hand in his right to drag him along with them. It was a spontaneous movement, but Danny felt oddly secure in his palm and as Danny’s fingers slide into alignment with his own, Steve’s pulse rate increases ten fold. He only hopes that his partner can’t feel that at the point where their two thumbs have absentmindedly wrapped around one another. Grace pulls them into a seat right at the front of the glass so she can see the seals best, and as they all fall into their seats Steve realises their hands are still clasped together, the apples of his cheeks begin to flush, and he moves to open the backpack by way of releasing Danny’s hand. Not that he wanted to. He was still feeling the burning touch on him as he rifled though Danny’s bag in which he discovered the various components for a picnic. A picnic. A fucking family picnic. 

“What are you looking for?” questioned Danny, slightly leaning into Steve as he did so. Only flustering Steve more.

‘Security. Safety and monogamy. Someone to curl into at night.’ Steve thought, colouring again. “Just looking for some water” he replied pulling a bottle out from the bottom of the bag. 

A voice came over the tannoy announcing that the seal display was about to start, and Grace began to wiggle around in her seat in anticipation. She had her hand on Steve’s knee, tapping her fingers impatiently. Steve wrapped an arm around her and pulled her to his side like he had done with Danny only a week earlier. 

“Excited much kiddo?” He chuckled as he released her. He turned to Danny to give him a broad smile, only to see Danny’s face awash with an emotion he couldn’t quite figure out. It was a sort of intense stare, pensive and delighted all at once. 

“Ladies and gentleman, welcome to Honolulu Zoo’s most slippery attraction, the Seal enclosure!” A woman clad in a green polo shirt, khaki trousers and a microphone headset stepped onto the island in the middle of the water. 

Danny elbowed Steve and in a heavy whisper said “Sounds right up your street Steve”. 

Steve throws Danny an unamused look and returns his gaze to the seal keeper babbling about habitats. 

The show lasts for 15 minutes, throughout which Danny notices Steve’s face displaying numerous intrigued and impressed faces. 

“Because seals can spend months at sea, they can actually sleep under water.” Articulated the seal keeper to the audience.

“That is so cool! Woah, can you believe that Gracie?” Steve was wearing a genuine look of amazement which made Danny laugh out loud about.

“And even cooler than that, Elephant seals can dive to at least 1000 feat below water, which boys and girls, I think you will agree is pretty impressive.” 

“That is crazy. I didn’t even know that.” Steve muttered, shaking his head slowly from left to right. 

“… so thank you for coming, feel free to stick around and ask any questions you might have. Enjoy the rest of your day”. The seal keeper was waving at everyone now, and walking back off her island and into the crowd grouping at the front of the glass to get a closer look at the seals swimming past. 

The three of them got up to walk out of the enclosure, Grace leading them again. But Danny couldn’t hold it in any more.

“Ok Steve. How is it that you are an actual Navy SEAL, and yet you know so little about real life seals? It is your token animal for gods sake.” Danny joked, his hands waving again.

Steve considered this for a moment, then looked Danny dead in the eyes as they walked past a group of Japanese tourists and replied, “You realise, Danno, that we aren’t actually named after seals, it is just an acronym. SEa, Air and Land. You get that right?” He looked incredulous.   
 “Yes Steve, I realise that. But you can’t be a SEAL and not know about seals. It just defies logic.”   
“Just because I am not versed in primate facts Danny, doesn’t mean I am completely lacking in knowledge.” Steve retorted, settling into the comfortable mocking.

“Don’t be jealous of my superior animal knowledge Steve. I just think it is funny. You’re funny.” Danny shook his head, exhaling a breathy laugh.

“Well I’ve never had to impress anyone with seal facts before Daniel.” Steve had the look of a cheshire cat about him, a grin that was all toothy and didn’t easily hide his mischievousness, it was wrought in his eyes.

Grace was stood by the meerkats, consumed by the way they stood on their tiny back legs and flicked their heads left and right surveilling the area. Danny had stopped in his tracks and his blue eyes were piercing Steve’s.

“Are you trying to impress me Steve?” he inquired, the corners of his mouth upturned.

“Always Danno.” Steve replied calmly, walking past Danny and taking up a position next to Grace. 

There was something about that meerkat that reminded him of Danny.

“Danno, this meerkat looks like you!” Grace beamed. A hearty laugh exploded from Steve as he clapped Danny on the shoulder who was now stood at Steve’s side. 

“That meerkat is called the sentry Gracie, he is the guard who watches out for the predators while the others are foraging for food and looking after the babies. They can see predators from more than 300 metres away.” Steve announced smugly. He wasn’t going to let Danny get away with his previous comment. Steve knew stuff. It was just sporadic.

“Learn that from your days in the desert, Super SEAL?” probed Danny. “Because that kind of knowledge is what is going to get you accepted into this here clan”, he was waving his finger back and forth between him and Grace.

“Danno, Steve is already in our clan.” Grace shook her head disapprovingly and took Steve’s hand, which Steve lifted up and pointed at while winking at Danny.

“I’m already in the clan Danno. Jeez.” Danny vows to remember that irritating smirk on Steve’s face because he knows it will surface again throughout the day as his daughter defies him and takes Steve’s side more and more.

Grace pulls Steve away onto the next enclosure, babbling something about a pygmy hippopotamus. 

He sighs happily and Danny murmurs to himself, “I know Gracie. I know”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your kind feedback! As ever it is really great to receive anything tbh! 
> 
> Sorry that this chapter was a little late, I have been super busy atm.
> 
> As always find me at thebutcherscrossing.tumblr.com
> 
> xoxoxoxox


	5. The Pull Back.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Danny makes Steve the perfect sandwich, Steve chickens out, and things finally come to a head between the two boys.

Even Grace looked a little worn out by the time lunch came around. They had somehow made it around the whole zoo in 3 hours, Grace had managed to stare excitedly at most animals, and Danny had managed to expertly (and rather smugly) dish out strange facts about each one - much to Steve’s amusement. Steve, safe in the knowledge that he knew roughly 7 facts in total about the wider animal kingdom (and had already used up his Meerkat ones), had chosen this time to simply appreciate his friend’s abstract knowledge and of course senselessly mock him when the opportunity arose.

For lunch they had chosen a spot in the food area, on the grass and in the dappled shade of a tree, and were tucking into a variety of sandwiches. They were surrounded by other families on days out. A small birthday party of about fifteen 6 year olds sat to their left devouring birthday cake and chattering animatedly, and to their right was a young family laughing and playing with two 3 year old twins in matching hawaiin rompers. Grace was lying down having finished her sandwich in a alarmingly short period of time, with her head resting on Steve’s outstretched leg. Danny passed him a foil wrapped sandwich that he had missed while he had been buying them tea and lemonade from the food stall. 

“What is this Danny?” Steve inquired as he peeled away the tin foil to reveal a ham and cucumber sandwich on rye bread. 

“It is a sandwich Steve. Typically we eat them in civilised culture, often at lunch time, it is a neat and tidy way of consuming meats, cheeses or even vegetables between two slices of bread.” Danny had an eye brow cocked upwards and a smirk on his face, just begging Steve to react.  
 “Yeah, thanks. I don’t need the social history of the sandwich, we have all heard enough of your fauna based knowledge today and are suitably impressed, so you can stop now.” He took the sandwich completely out of the foil casing and smiled, saying in a quieter tone now; “I just meant, that you made me a ham and cucumber sandwich…. and you made it on rye bread, you don’t even own rye bread”. 

Danny had bought him rye bread. Danny had rye bread for Steve sitting in his kitchen. God damn it Danny.

Danny shrugged his shoulders and looked away like it was nothing. “It’s your favourite. Besides a good sandwich is a thing of true beauty”. He shifted his body closer to Steve, sitting against the tree with mere centimetres between them. 

“Thanks Buddy.” Steve offered, he was fizzing again, his cheeks slightly warming, then began tucking into his sandwich desperately wanting to savour it but unable because it was so darned good. Another tick in the ‘Danny is right’ column. 

Grace lazily played with the grass beneath her palms and Danny watched as his partner and daughter sat together so comfortably, Grace with her head on Steve’s leg, her beautiful long eye lashes closed and flickering slightly as though she was thinking hard about something. Steve had all but finished his sandwich and had one hand softly stroking Grace’s hair where is was coming away from her plaits. Too many hours of excited jumping around, not even the tightest of plaits could withstand Grace’s animal enthralment. 

Danny felt a sense of complete calm. He had found that more and more frequently, admittedly mainly on Saturdays. Saturdays with Grace and Steve. As much as he didn’t want to explore what his heart was desperately encouraging him to think about, is was getting clearer and clearer every day. There was only so much Danny could do to stop it, and blatantly ignoring it wasn't helping. Steve and his stupid goofy smile was worming it’s way in, everywhere he looked. He had spent most of his birthday wondering whether he could invite Steve to the zoo and working out how to best ask without it sounding like a desperate plea.   
As soon as Kono had placed the tickets in his hand he instinctively started thinking about how they would all get to the zoo, which car they would take, what food. He hadn’t even realised how natural it was to simply include Steve in their life. It would have been bizarre had it been anyone else, but that was the thing. It was Steve. Nothing was bizarre with him, I mean like literally everything was strange and fucked up and dangerous and slightly unnerving… but the way that he had simply slotted into Danny’s life so quickly and so smoothly was actually quite impressive. Not to mention startling.

“Danno?” Grace chimed, eyes still closed, sun warming her face.  
 “Yes Monkey?”

“Can we stay at Uncle Steve’s tonight? I left my cardigan there and also he has a really comfy spare bed.” She said it in a matter of fact way, the corners of her mouth turning up slowly.

Steve let out a breathy laugh as he finished the last corner of his rye bread and scrunched up the tin foil.   
 “Ok, for starters, you didn’t leave your cardigan there the other week because I picked it up and put it in your bag before you left, but nice try. Secondly, you are a liar Grace Williams. That bed is not as comfy as the delightful purple one we just bought together for your new room. And finally, I think Uncle Steve might be a bit exhausted after our day out, a few hours with us is probably enough, we should let him resume his normal weekend activities.” Danny explained, pulling at one of Grace’s plaits and simultaneously brushing Steve’s leg with the side of his palm softly. Even in the high heat of the mid day sun, it sent shivers across Steve’s body, and shocks straight to his groin.

Grace made a huffing noise in response to her father’s justifications. “Ok Danno.” she replied sullenly. 

“Ignore your Dad Monkey, of course you can stay over. If Danno wants to go home and relax on his own he can, we can make dinner and watch the sun go down instead.” Steve said cheerfully, elbowing Danny in the ribs lightly. “Stop thinking I want rid of you. You are my usual weekend activity. And don’t sully my name by telling your daughter I will be ‘exhausted’ after a day at the zoo. You are vastly underestimating my stamina for fun”. There was that subtle grin again, laced with subtext and double meaning.

Steve had turned his head so that he was face to face with Danny, their bodies had stilled, with too little space between them. Steve watched as Danny’s cheeks and eyes softened, the corners of his eyes crinkled a little. Danny could hear Steve’s breathing, slow and steady over the gentle rumbling of excitement around them.

“That’s settled then. Uncle Steve’s for dinner!” Grace sang, sitting up and interrupting the moment, encouraging Danny’s eyes back onto her before he became too tempted to close the gap between his face and Steve’s. He had a sort of low buzzing somewhere at the bottom of his stomach and he could discern a definite increase in his own pulse beneath the skin of his wrist, and in the sturdy flesh of his thigh.

Steve shifted himself to start collecting up the leftovers from the picnic and pushing away the rising tide of mild panic he was feeling. 

“Do you want to have another walk around Gracie and then maybe get we could head home and get some shave ice on the way back?” Steve asked.

Danny was definitely somewhere in the realm of marvelling at Steve now. There was a fondness in his eyes which Steve was missing since he was too busy distracting himself clearing up. But Grace caught it. She saw that familiar openness that he reserved for her and only a few others, and smiled at the thought. 

“Sounds good Uncle Steve. Lemurs first.” clambering to her feet, and beaming from ear to ear, she offered her hand to her father and pulled him to his feet cuddling into him as she did so.

“What is this for?” Danny quizzed as his daughter clasped her arms around him. 

“Just because Danno.” Then she reached out an arm, and with the strength of a girl who was much older than 10, pulled Steve into the hug too. “I love Saturdays with you guys”. 

Steve reeled a little at the sudden closeness of his partner, but upon recovery, slid an arm around Danny’s shoulders slowly gaging whether it was ok. He felt the slump of Danny’s body into his a little, and squeezed him and Grace tight against himself. He could smell the hair wax Danny used and the scent of his aftershave, the smell of sandal wood, clean and natural much like the man himself. In response he felt Danny pull an arm out from around Grace and wrap it around Steve’s waist. Nestling his fingers under Steve’s over shirt and holding his ribs firmly. 

This spelled trouble.

—————

By the time they had finished wandering around the enclosures again, noting down which were Gracie’s favourite and then purchasing most of the gift shop, it was about 4.30pm in the afternoon. They drove home, their faces slightly sun kissed and lazy smiles all round, stopping for a quick shave ice before heading back to Steve’s and pulled up to the house just as the evening began to break.

Steve walked into the kitchen and dropped his keys with a satisfying clink onto the marble counter top, pulling a couple of beers from the fridge and leaning back against the work surface. He was picturing the mess of flour and eggs and sugar that had decorated his kitchen only a week prior as Danny walked in, a contented look etched into his demeanour. 

“I’m exhausted.” Steve sighed. “I did not expect this from a day at the Zoo.”

“What was that about stamina Mr Navy SEAL?” Danny jibed, taking a beer in hand and swigging it from the bottle. He took a seat on one of the stools at the breakfast island and cracked his neck. “I did warn you. We can always head home after Grace has had a shower if you like. You don’t have to polite you know.” 

“No! That isn’t what I meant you idiot. I really enjoyed today. It has been so educational.” He chuckled, walking over and prodding Danny in the ribs. Danny responded by turning in his seat round, his body now completely turned to face Steve, legs spread slightly, beer still in hand. 

“I’m starting to think you might be a bit jealous Steven. Can’t bear that I am better at something than you?” His face was plastered in a wicked grin, as he swigged from his beer again.

Steve inched closer into Danny’s space. A small, almost imperceptible movement, barely noticeable had Danny’s attention not been finely tuned to Steve’s every flex and shift. 

“I have no idea what you are talking about. I know plenty. I was just letting you impress your daughter, you know. Don’t want to get in the way of father daughter time.” They hadn’t broken eye contact yet. “Besides, I don’t need to be jealous, I’m already a part of your little clan, remember?” he inched forward just a little, just so much so that he had to tilt his chin down ever so slightly. His eyes darted across Danny’s face to try to detect any signs of him being uncomfortable, providing him even the slightest reason to pull back.

There was none.

Danny placed the bottle on the table top, the sound of glass hitting marble, the distant sound of a shower turning on and the muffled sound of Grace singing were the only things that could be heard. The tension was thick in the air, Steve almost quivered with the anticipation of it all. But the pressure of the moment was too much, and he was frozen to the spot. He clasped onto his bottle tightly and shifted back. He couldn’t bare to be so much in Danny’s personal space, not like this. It was excruciating. 

Quick footsteps pattered along the floor above as a little voice rang out down the stairs. It distracted both men enough to allow for a shift in movement and a little air to run between them.

“Uncle Steve? Where is your shampoo?” Grace shouted.

Steve moved far too quickly, almost sprinting towards the stairs to respond. “Just in the cabinet, here Grace, I’ll find it for you”. And with that, he was up the stairs and away from the tension of that … what ever that was with Danny. 

Danny sighed, picking up the beer bottle again, dropping his head back and looking at the kitchen ceiling. 

‘Only one solution to this problem.’ he thought. ‘Pizza’. 

————— 

A few minutes later, Steve came down stairs (much more slowly than he had ascended them) and tentatively walked into the kitchen.

“I’ve ordered pizza. Figured we are all tired and it would be easier than trying to piece something together.” Danny said. He had another beer next to him, the first bottle empty already. He had sensed that it was going to be that kind of night.

“Great. Thanks.” Steve mumbled. This was madness. He had just screwed up a near perfect moment. Royally screwed it up, after such a perfect day. How was it that he had wanted to be that close to Danny, had dreamed of it, for so long, but when it happened he couldn't bring himself to actually take the next step.

Steve set about washing up the bowl and cups he had left from his breakfast as a heady silence filled the room. He could hear Danny slowly sipping away at his longboard and flicking through the newspaper on the table top. He didn’t even bother asking him what pizza he had ordered. Apart from the fact that it was completely inconsequential because he would eat anything right now, he know that Danny would have ordered him a Hawaiian anyway. Danny may have hated the concept of pineapple on pizza (and boy did he make that evident every time Steve ordered one) but he knew Danny wouldn’t begrudge him that. 

“Grace wanted to know if you still had our ticket stubs from today? She wants to put them in her box apparently.” 

Danny looked up at Steve, who was drying his hands on the tea towel. 

“Oh christ. Yeah, they’re in my wallet.” His face flushed a little. “Have you actually seen that box? As in, has she shown you it’s contents yet?” He asked nervously.

“No. Why?” 

Danny huffed, and rubbed the back of his neck with his left hand.

“It is interesting is all. There are a lot of things in there from our weekends together. It’s cute. She’s a good girl.” He was not quite stammering, but there was a punctuated sound to his short sentences. 

“Oh. So sort of like a box of… of us?” Steve proposed in a hushed tone. 

“Yeah. A lot like that.” 

Quiet fell again. 

Quiet and then the thundering of Grace as she careered down the stairs and into the kitchen.

“Monkey, how are you still this energetic?” Danny exclaimed distractedly. “Pizza will be here soon.”

“Awesome. Did you order me pepperoni Danno?” She said hopping up onto a stool next to her father. 

“Of course Monkey. I bought a large so you can have some for breakfast too. As long as your mother doesn’t find out. Then we are both in trouble.” He combed his fingers through Grace’s long hair, catching the excess water on the fabric of his trousers, the droplets dispersing like dark ink. They would dry quickly in the mild Hawaiian air.

Steve wrinkled his nose. “Pizza for breakfast. Outrageous.” His tone was light though, no heat to his distaste. It wasn’t like he hadn’t delved into the realm of leftovers for breakfast before anyway.

—————

After the pizza boxes had been cleared away, and the sunset had slid behind the curtain of the ocean, all three sleepy zoo-goers headed back into the house.

“Time for bed, Monkey.” Danny said, he looked tired himself, thought Steve. It had been a jam packed day, not without a few odd/sexually charged moments.

“Yes, Danno.” Grace replied. She didn’t even want to argue at this point. Yawning, she slung her arms around Steve’s waist. “G’night Uncle Steve. Sleep well”. 

“Night kiddo. You too.” Steve mumbled softly as he pressed a kiss into the top of her head. 

“I’ll be back in a few minutes.” said Danny softly, throwing a smile at Steve as he wandered up the stairs, Grace in tow. 

Steve muddled around the kitchen a little, finally settling on the sofa flicking through channels and selecting a rerun of some old cop show he had seen time and time again.

Steve had almost fallen asleep by the time Danny came back downstairs, and didn’t even notice when he slid down into the sofa next to him. 

“Hey.” He whispered, sleep mussed and a little croaky.

“Hey.” Danny replied, smiling slowly at Steve’s voice. “Tired?”.

“A little.” Arching his back and hearing the vertebrae click rhythmically one by one. Danny winced a little.

“Thanks for coming today. And for letting us come over for dinner.” He slumped down and rested his head on the back of the sofa, eyes closed. “And for letting us sleep over too”.

“You’re always welcome here Danny. You and Grace. Whenever.” Steve said unobtrusively.

“I know. It’s odd, but it is appreciated you know.” That was a statement if ever Steve heard one.

“What is?” 

“Well. We have sort of fallen into a pattern here haven’t we?” He cracked open his eyes to gage Steve’s reaction.

Steve focused on the very ends of his finger tips. He didn’t like where this was going.

“Oh. Yeah. Maybe we have.” He was much quieter now. Danny was going to tell him things needed to change. He had pushed it too far. He felt that fizzing in his stomach again. Maybe the pineapple hadn’t been a good idea. 

“Steven. Stop over thinking what I am saying, I can hear your brain whirring from here and I haven’t finished what I want to say yet. I would at least like to finish before you decide how you are going to freak out on me.” He laughed a little at Steve’s slight stiffening of shoulders. “I mean, Grace loves you, and I am really glad that you have sort of just let us fill up your weekends.”

“Ok. But then, what is odd about that?” Steve queried, still fizzing.

“Ah. Well, that is the whole comfort thing. More about me I guess.” Danny stated. Steve shifted to turn towards him and Danny sat up a little.  
 Danny waited for Steve to interrupt and when he didn’t, decided to plough on. 

“Well. I guess, I feel… we feel… I feel, very comfortable here.” Silence again. “I am saying that I am grateful I guess, because you know it hasn’t been easy. But I feel like maybe, I actually have a home in Hawaii now. I’m not so consistently and frequently wanting to hop on a plane back to Jersey anymore.” Steve inhaled and exhaled slowly as he said so. ”Barely ever, actually.” 

He ran a hand through his hair and settled back into the sofa again, closing his eyes, tiredness overcoming him. Emotions weren’t easy when it came to Steve McGarrett.

But then he heard the movement of fabric against fabric, and all at once there were lips on his own. Soft, but firm and with intent. A hand framing the right hand side of his face and one on his left shoulder holding Steve from falling completely on top of him. Danny’s eyes flew open, his eyelashes brushing Steve’s cheek as Steve pulled back.

“Hey.” Danny rasped, the breath knocked out of him.

“You don’t want to go back? Is that what you are saying?” Steve looked a little desperate, his eyes were scouring Danny’s face with a mixture of alarm and anticipation. His hand had migrated to Danny’s chest, the other still firm in place on Danny’s jawline, stroking it softly with his thumb. He could feel the soft pulse of Steve’s thumb against his jaw bone.

“I mean, I have my moments Steven, most of them happen to be when bullets are flying past my flesh. But yes. That is what I am saying.” He leant forward into Steve and pulled Steve back into the kiss. He found himself pulling at Steve’s shirt, bunching it up at the neck and trying to drag him closer towards him. 

Steve reaches his hand round onto Danny’s back and firmly grips him, then in what can only be described as a stealth move, flips Danny so that he sat on top of him, a leg either side of his body, upright and pressed into the sofa. They don’t even break lips, Danny acquiesces and lets Steve into his mouth, tongue licking and swirling softly as they consume one another.

Steve breaks again, pushing Danny back slightly. They are all staggered breaths, panting like teenagers. And Danny can definitely feel Steve’s cock pressing against him though his trousers. 

“Cause, you know this is your home right? Like… you are my home Danny.” He whispers, looking down. “That is so fucking cliche, I mean it is really is gross, but it is the only way I can describe it.” His cheeks, already flushed with pink from the sexual heat of the moment, flare again this time more out of embarrassment. He wished so badly that he could be a little more eloquent, a little less heavy handed with his words.

Danny lifted Steve’s chin lightly with his knuckle and planted a soft kiss onto his lips, stroking the hair at the nape of his neck as he did so. 

And as he pulled back he whispered, “Babe, you couldn’t be more right if you tried”. 

Steve felt a flush of heat rush through him. He wrapped his arms around his partner, one around his waist, one curling up around to hold his neck and pull him closer. They were flush up against each other, and sat the way they were, Danny straddling Steve, it was the perfect height for lip to lip contact. They kissed for what felt like hours, hands roaming across one another’s bodies, under shirts and around the belt line of their trousers, sometimes straying a little below the line of boxers and teasing one other. After about 20 minutes of frantic kissing and restrained manhandling (no clothes had been removed just yet, but both were sporting pretty rough and ready boners), Danny pulled away. He sat back on Steve’s thighs, marvelling at the sad little moan Steve released when lip contact was broken. He stroked his face and his chest, ran a hand through his hair. This was everything right now.

“Babe.” Steve tried to regain contact again. “No, Babe stop. I don’t want to get too hot and heavy here with my 10 year old daughter upstairs. It is just a bit too risky for me.” He sighed, and planted a kiss on Steve’s forehead. He could taste salt on his lips when he licked his lips.

Steve had his hands on Danny’s hips, rubbing his thumbs in small circles under Danny’s shirt, directly onto the skin of his hip bones. It was sending Danny wild (something Steve noted duly), his pupils were dilating even in the dusky light of the darkening room, and his lips looked deliciously red and swollen. 

“Fine.” He teased, removing his hands from underneath Danny’s shirt. 

Danny sank into him, head nestled into Steve’s shoulder as he breathed heavily, the heat from his breathe overly hot on Steve’s skin. He had waited for this for so long. He was willing to wait a little longer to have unlimited access to Danny. 

Wordlessly, they pealed away from one another, breath slowing considerably.

“At least, sleep in my bed tonight. We can just sleep. But at least stay with me so that when I wake up I don’t think I imagined all of this.” Steve whispered into Danny, pulling him into his embrace. The strain in his voice, a badly hidden worry that maybe Danny would change his mind, was both crushing and adorable to Danny. There was no way he could withstand that kind of talk.

“Sure thing.” He replied, unfurling himself from Steve’s arms, taking him by the hand and leading him upstairs to Steve’s bedroom.

—————

After they had peeled off their mildly sticky clothing, and were just in boxers, they had traipsed into Steve’s bathroom and brushed their teeth, throwing each other little looks in the mirror but not saying a thing. Wordless but decidedly comfortable.

Steve had curled up in bed, pulling back the covers for Danny to slip under while Danny peed. When he finished, he walked out of the bathroom to find the moonlight bathing Steve in the palest and most pure of light. He slipped under the covers and Steve’s semi-conscious body pulled him close, one huge arm wrapped around his chest and holding him protectively like he never wanted to let him go.

Steve put his lips to the very top vertebrae of Danny’s spine and planted a kiss. 

“G’night Danno.” he murmured, almost too tired to speak.

“G’night Steve.” Danny replied, contented beyond that which he thought could ever be possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, your feedback has been outstanding. It encourages me so much - so much so that I wrote this all tonight (only a few days after the last chapter update). 
> 
> I don't know how this comes across. As I say it is my first fic ever, so I am not entirely sure i am doing it right, but here's to trying?
> 
> I really hope you enjoyed it, only a few more chapters I think, not sure yet.
> 
> As always find me at thebutcherscrossing.tumblr.com
> 
> xoxox

**Author's Note:**

> So, I really hope this wasn't too horrible. It is my first time putting anything out there on the internet. I love these characters on Hawaii 5-0 and desperately want them to get together but alas. Anyway, I just wanted to join the fanfic world, and thought I would jump into the deep end with this. I don't know whether it will go further, hopefully I will keep writing!
> 
> I also don't really know anyone in the mcdanno fandom as I am so new to this, so don't have anyone to edit for me. If anyone fancies doing that drop me a message on my tumblr!
> 
> Hit me up on Tumblr @thebutcherscrossing.tumblr.com for prompts, writing and general Mcdanno feelings. 
> 
> xoxox


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